eighty year sentinel...in georgia, the ccc employed over 75,000 men during its existence in over 120...
TRANSCRIPT
Compiled by Judd Smith, Interpretive Specialist | Georgia Department of Natural Resources
Parks, Recreation and Historic Sites Division | November 1, 2015
Eighty Year Sentinel THE RESTORATION OF THE C.C.C. FIRE TOWER AT FORT
MOUNTAIN STATE PARK 2014-15
PAGE 1
Civilian Conservation Corps
In 1933 the United States was firmly in the grip of the Great Depression.
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt enacted a series of programs collectively
known as the “New Deal” and through them developed the Civilian Conservation
Corps (CCC). The CCC afforded able-bodied young men the opportunity to work,
gain skills and support their families with a steady paycheck. The CCC built
parks, worked on timber and erosion projects and built the infrastructure for
many buildings still in use today. In Georgia, the CCC employed over 75,000 men
during its existence in over 120 camps. The CCC legacy is found in numerous
Georgia state parks and historic sites. The fire tower constructed on Fort
Mountain’s summit is a fine example of CCC craftsmanship.
Owing their existence to a huge forest fire in the Pacific Northwest in 1910, fire
towers were constructed across the country to provide early warning for forest
firefighters. In 1934, the CCC camp 468 (SP-6) worked at Fort Mountain. Using
native stone, they labored to create the stone tower and other park facilities. The
tower was completed in 1935 and it stood guard as a fire tower until the early
1960’s when a modern steel tower was built on a nearby mountain. In 1971, the
top of the tower burned and the stone tower fell into disuse- a reminder of a
bygone era.
The fire tower ca. 1930’s
PAGE 2
Restoration 2014-2015
In 2014, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Parks, Recreation and
Historic Sites Division (PRHS) allocated approximately $189,000 to restore the
tower to its 1930’s appearance.
In early 2014, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Engineering and
Construction Division (E&C) contracted with David Freedman of the Freedman
Engineering Group to begin the process of turning the restoration into reality.
Freedman retained the services of architect Barbara Black who researched and
planned the drawings that would be used in the restoration, and Dave Smith of
Smith Associates provided the needed structural engineering planning. Once the
architectural drawings were complete, the entire project was submitted to the
Historic Preservation Division (HPD) for approval. Once approved, E&C placed
the project out for bid, and Peachtree Construction Services was awarded the
contract.
In August 2014, representatives of PRHS, E&C, Freedman Engineering Group
and Peachtree Construction met at Fort Mountain and detailed the scope of work
for the project. This entailed thorough procedures for the work to be done
including: reconstruction of the entrance and interior steps, completely
rebuilding the cupola of the tower, stone and masonry repairs and the addition of
a seating area at the base of the tower.
The following pages provide a visual record for the process that took over one
year to complete.
The fire tower ca. 1960’s
PAGE 3
The Existing Structure in 2014
Exterior view of the front of the fire
tower
Top of the fire tower
minus the cupola
PAGE 4
Concrete and Stone Masonry: Re-facing the Past
The CCC workers left a rich cultural legacy and their stone and masonry work in
the 1930’s has withstood over eighty years of natural and man-made disasters. It
is a testament to their craftsmanship. The fire which claimed the wooden cupola
in the 1970’s left its mark on the stone, but the CCC work still provided the
modern workers a framework to begin the restoration process. Masons replaced
broken and missing stones, leveled out areas and poured concrete footings that
served to provide stability for the steps and rebuilt cupola.
PAGE 5
Local stone was used to replace and repair missing and damaged stones on the
tower.
PAGE 6
Steelwork and Framing: Supporting the Past
Much of the original CCC era interior of the structure had been gutted by fire and
was not salvageable. The contractor, under direction from Engineering and
Construction officials and using plans drawn by the architect and engineer,
decided to use steel beams and steps to provide access to the top of the interior
and to provide support for the reconstruction of the cupola.
PAGE 7
The original steps were cantilevered from the walls, but the modern steps are
steel clad in wood.
The steel girders are needed to support the weight of the cupola.
PAGE 8
Carpentry: Shaping the Past
The tower’s most distinctive shape and recognizable image was its unique cupola.
Until recently, it was available to view only in pictures more than four decades
old. By using the types of wood originally used in the tower, predominately
Southern Cypress, the cupola’s reconstruction now provides visitors a modern
view of the tower’s shape.
The exterior stairs were fabricated to closely resemble the original entrance.
PAGE 9
Much of the Cypress used in the tower was rough sawn lumber. In this photo the
saw marks are clearly visible on the timber. CCC camps in many places had saw
mills that they used to make the boards and timbers needed for projects.
PAGE 10
The cupola taking shape, winter 2015
PAGE 11
Inside the reconstructed cupola, fall 2015
The restored tower and seating area, summer 2015
PAGE 12
Interpreting the Past
In order to help park visitors understand the importance of the tower and its
significant role in the history of Fort Mountain State Park, the PRHS Interpretive
Unit and an exhibit design firm developed interpretive panels to tell the history of
the area and explain the details of the tower’s restoration. Part of the park’s
interpretation of the tower also includes th use of a donated Osborne Fire Finder
and a lightning stool. The park’s plan is to offer guided hikes to the tower and to
have vistas from which people at the top of tower can see what the rangers saw in
the 1930s-1960s. Park interpreters will also discuss the important work of
rangers, CCC workers and the development of modern forest fire detection and
fire fighting techniques to current and future park visitors.
An example of one of the intepretive panels dealing with the tower’s restoration.
These types of panels are located at areas along the trail leading to the tower and
provide a stopping point to gather information about the unique aspects of local
history and the science behind the creation of the fire towers across the country.
PAGE 13
Connecting the Past, Present and Future
On October 29, 2015, Georgia State Parks and Historic Sites held a ribbon cutting
and grand re-opening of the tower. Its legacy is a testament to men of the CCC
and others throughout the years that have served as caretakers of the tower and
that history was honored by dignitaries from Federal, State and Local agencies,
and park visitors, as well as numerous citizens from the local community.
The Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, October 28, 2015. Pictured from left to right:
Brad Ballard-Park Manager, Joe Yeager-Region One Manager, Wayne Escoe-
former Fort Mountain Park Manager and PRHS Chief Of Operations (ret.), Wally
Woods-PRHS Assistant Director, and Larry Blankenship- PRHS Chief of
Operations.
PAGE 14
A Legacy of Love Carved in Stone
CCC Local Experienced Man Arnold Bailey was the stone mason that organized
and led the building of the tower in 1934-5. Working on February 14, Valentine’s
Day, Bailey was moved to do something special for his sweetheart. Above one of
the windows he was working on he placed a heart shaped stone to signify his love
for her. The two were later married and had children. For many years before and
after Mr. Bailey’s death his wife and children would visit the tower to see the
tribute of love set in stone.
But, in a larger sense, Arnold Bailey’s heart stone represents the labor of love that
includes all the CCC workers and their families who suffered through the dark
times of the depression. Bailey’s stone also represents the vision of Ivan Allen,
Sr., a successful Atlanta businessman, who donated the land in the 1920’s that
became Fort Mountain State Park. The heart stone also stands as silent witness to
the work done at Fort Mountain State Park by generations of park managers,
professionals and other guiding hands. It has become a carved metaphor for the
care and love that years and years of park visitors and volunteers have brought to
the park and the joys experienced along its trails and splendid scenery.
Just as those firefighters of a bygone era used the tower to peer into the distance
to help protect the vast reaches of North Georgia’s mountains, the fire tower is a
testament to the nature of humanity itself to build, discover and look ahead into
the future.
The Bailey children photographed under the iconic heart shaped stone at the
ribbon cutting ceremony, fall 2015
PAGE 15
Agencies, Contractors and Individuals Involved in the
Tower Restoration Project
Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Parks, Recreation and Historic Sites
Division
Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Engineering and Construction
Division
Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Historic Preservation Division
Georgia Forestry Commission
Freedman Engineering Group
Barbara Kovacs Black Architect LLC – Project Architect
Smith Associates – Structural Engineering
Peachtree Construction Services- General Contractor
Pritchett Technology – Steelwork
Chattahoochee Rock Construction Company – Masonry
Crisco’s Construction – Carpentry
Powers Woodworks – Windows
Doors – Keystone Millwork
Door Hardware – Baldwin Brass, Lakeshore Entry Trim
Roofing – Morris Farms Cypress Sawmill
DeemLoureiro, Inc. – Interpretive Panel Design and Fabrication